System to track engagement of media items

ABSTRACT

An engagement tracking system monitors user interactions with media items to calculate an engagement score of the media item. The engagement tracking system may be or include a group of one or more server machines configured to detect an exposure of a client device to a media item maintained by the engagement tracking system. In response to detecting the exposure of the client device to the media item, the engagement tracking system tracks a location of the client device based on access requests to location based media items. The engagement tracking system may thereby monitor client devices exposed to the media item in order to calculate an engagement score of the media item.

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This application is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priorityof U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/665,625, filed on Oct. 28, 2019,which is a continuation of and claims the benefit of priority of U.S.patent application Ser. No. 16/401,074, filed on May 1, 2019, which is acontinuation of and claims the benefit of priority of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/149,849, filed on Oct. 2, 2018, which is acontinuation of and claims the benefit of priority of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 16/035,209, filed on Jul. 13, 2018, which is acontinuation of and claims the benefit of priority to U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/461,671, filed on Mar. 17, 2017, which is acontinuation of and claims the benefit of prioirty of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/195,684, filed on Jun. 28, 2016, each of whichis hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to mobilecomputing technology and, more particularly, but not by way oflimitation, to geolocation-based media items.

BACKGROUND

A geo-fence is a virtual boundary that encompasses a real-worldgeographic area. Once the virtual boundary is established, anadministrator can set triggers to transmit content when devices enter(or exit) the specified region. Advertisers often utilize geo-fences forthe purpose of distributing marketing campaigns to devices thattransgress the virtual boundary of the geo-fence.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

To easily identify the discussion of any particular element or act, themost significant digit or digits in a reference number refer to thefigure number in which that element is first introduced.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example messaging system forexchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a networkin accordance with some embodiments, wherein the messaging systemincludes an engagement tracking system.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding amessaging system, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram illustrating data which may be stored inthe database of the messaging server system, according to certainexample embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a message,according to some embodiments, generated by a messaging clientapplication for communication.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an example access-limitingprocess, in terms of which access to content (e.g., an ephemeralmessage, and associated multimedia payload of data) or a contentcollection (e.g., an ephemeral message story) may be time-limited (e.g.,made ephemeral) in accordance with some embodiments.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating various modules of an engagementtracking system, according to certain example embodiments.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a geo-fence generated and maintained byan engagement tracking system, according to certain example embodiments.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method for calculating anengagement score, according to certain example embodiments.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating a method for calculating anengagement score, according to certain example embodiments.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method for calculating anengagement score, according to certain example embodiments.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating a representative softwarearchitecture, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described and used to implement variousembodiments.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating components of a machine,according to some example embodiments, able to read instructions from amachine-readable medium (e.g., a machine-readable storage medium) andperform any one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

GLOSSARY

“CARRIER SIGNAL” in this context refers to any intangible medium that iscapable of storing, encoding, or carrying instructions for execution bythe machine, and includes digital or analog communications signals orother intangible medium to facilitate communication of suchinstructions. Instructions may be transmitted or received over thenetwork using a transmission medium via a network interface device andusing any one of a number of well-known transfer protocols.

“CLIENT DEVICE” in this context refers to any machine that interfaces toa communications network to obtain resources from one or more serversystems or other client devices. A client device may be, but is notlimited to, a mobile phone, desktop computer, laptop, portable digitalassistants (PDAs), smart phones, tablets, ultra books, netbooks,laptops, multi-processor systems, microprocessor-based or programmableconsumer electronics, game consoles, set-top boxes, or any othercommunication device that a user may use to access a network.

“COMMUNICATIONS NETWORK” in this context refers to one or more portionsof a network that may be an ad hoc network, an intranet, an extranet, avirtual private network (VPN), a local area network (LAN), a wirelessLAN (WLAN), a wide area network (WAN), a wireless WAN (WWAN), ametropolitan area network (MAN), the Internet, a portion of theInternet, a portion of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN), aplain old telephone service (POTS) network, a cellular telephonenetwork, a wireless network, a Wi-Fi® network, another type of network,or a combination of two or more such networks. For example, a network ora portion of a network may include a wireless or cellular network andthe coupling may be a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) connection, aGlobal System for Mobile communications (GSM) connection, or other typeof cellular or wireless coupling. In this example, the coupling mayimplement any of a variety of types of data transfer technology, such asSingle Carrier Radio Transmission Technology (1×RTT), Evolution-DataOptimized (EVDO) technology, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS)technology, Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE) technology,third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) including 3G, fourthgeneration wireless (4G) networks, Universal Mobile TelecommunicationsSystem (UMTS), High Speed Packet Access (HSPA), WorldwideInteroperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Long Term Evolution (LTE)standard, others defined by various standard setting organizations,other long range protocols, or other data transfer technology.

“EMPHEMERAL MESSAGE” in this context refers to a message that isaccessible for a time-limited duration. An ephemeral message may be atext, an image, a video and the like. The access time for the ephemeralmessage may be set by the message sender. Alternatively, the access timemay be a default setting or a setting specified by the recipient.Regardless of the setting technique, the message is transitory.

“MACHINE-READABLE MEDIUM” in this context refers to a component, deviceor other tangible media able to store instructions and data temporarilyor permanently and may include, but is not be limited to, random-accessmemory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), buffer memory, flash memory,optical media, magnetic media, cache memory, other types of storage(e.g., Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM)) and/or anysuitable combination thereof. The term “machine-readable medium” shouldbe taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., acentralized or distributed database, or associated caches and servers)able to store instructions. The term “machine-readable medium” shallalso be taken to include any medium, or combination of multiple media,that is capable of storing instructions (e.g., code) for execution by amachine, such that the instructions, when executed by one or moreprocessors of the machine, cause the machine to perform any one or moreof the methodologies described herein. Accordingly, a “machine-readablemedium” refers to a single storage apparatus or device, as well as“cloud-based” storage systems or storage networks that include multiplestorage apparatus or devices. The term “machine-readable medium”excludes signals per se.

“COMPONENT” in this context refers to a device, physical entity or logichaving boundaries defined by function or subroutine calls, branchpoints, application program interfaces (APIs), or other technologiesthat provide for the partitioning or modularization of particularprocessing or control functions. Components may be combined via theirinterfaces with other components to carry out a machine process. Acomponent may be a packaged functional hardware unit designed for usewith other components and a part of a program that usually performs aparticular function of related functions. Components may constituteeither software components (e.g., code embodied on a machine-readablemedium) or hardware components. A “hardware component” is a tangibleunit capable of performing certain operations and may be configured orarranged in a certain physical manner. In various example embodiments,one or more computer systems (e.g., a standalone computer system, aclient computer system, or a server computer system) or one or morehardware components of a computer system (e.g., a processor or a groupof processors) may be configured by software (e.g., an application orapplication portion) as a hardware component that operates to performcertain operations as described herein. A hardware component may also beimplemented mechanically, electronically, or any suitable combinationthereof. For example, a hardware component may include dedicatedcircuitry or logic that is permanently configured to perform certainoperations. A hardware component may be a special-purpose processor,such as a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or an ApplicationSpecific Integrated Circuit (ASIC). A hardware component may alsoinclude programmable logic or circuitry that is temporarily configuredby software to perform certain operations. For example, a hardwarecomponent may include software executed by a general-purpose processoror other programmable processor. Once configured by such software,hardware components become specific machines (or specific components ofa machine) uniquely tailored to perform the configured functions and areno longer general-purpose processors. It will be appreciated that thedecision to implement a hardware component mechanically, in dedicatedand permanently configured circuitry, or in temporarily configuredcircuitry (e.g., configured by software) may be driven by cost and timeconsiderations. Accordingly, the phrase “hardware component” (or“hardware-implemented component”) should be understood to encompass atangible entity, be that an entity that is physically constructed,permanently configured (e.g., hardwired), or temporarily configured(e.g., programmed) to operate in a certain manner or to perform certainoperations described herein. Considering embodiments in which hardwarecomponents are temporarily configured (e.g., programmed), each of thehardware components need not be configured or instantiated at any oneinstance in time. For example, where a hardware component comprises ageneral-purpose processor configured by software to become aspecial-purpose processor, the general-purpose processor may beconfigured as respectively different special-purpose processors (e.g.,comprising different hardware components) at different times. Softwareaccordingly configures a particular processor or processors, forexample, to constitute a particular hardware component at one instanceof time and to constitute a different hardware component at a differentinstance of time. Hardware components can provide information to, andreceive information from, other hardware components. Accordingly, thedescribed hardware components may be regarded as being communicativelycoupled. Where multiple hardware components exist contemporaneously,communications may be achieved through signal transmission (e.g., overappropriate circuits and buses) between or among two or more of thehardware components. In embodiments in which multiple hardwarecomponents are configured or instantiated at different times,communications between such hardware components may be achieved, forexample, through the storage and retrieval of information in memorystructures to which the multiple hardware components have access. Forexample, one hardware component may perform an operation and store theoutput of that operation in a memory device to which it iscommunicatively coupled. A further hardware component may then, at alater time, access the memory device to retrieve and process the storedoutput. Hardware components may also initiate communications with inputor output devices, and can operate on a resource (e.g., a collection ofinformation). The various operations of example methods described hereinmay be performed, at least partially, by one or more processors that aretemporarily configured (e.g., by software) or permanently configured toperform the relevant operations. Whether temporarily or permanentlyconfigured, such processors may constitute processor-implementedcomponents that operate to perform one or more operations or functionsdescribed herein. As used herein, “processor-implemented component”refers to a hardware component implemented using one or more processors.Similarly, the methods described herein may be at least partiallyprocessor-implemented, with a particular processor or processors beingan example of hardware. For example, at least some of the operations ofa method may be performed by one or more processors orprocessor-implemented components. Moreover, the one or more processorsmay also operate to support performance of the relevant operations in a“cloud computing” environment or as a “software as a service” (SaaS).For example, at least some of the operations may be performed by a groupof computers (as examples of machines including processors), with theseoperations being accessible via a network (e.g., the Internet) and viaone or more appropriate interfaces (e.g., an Application ProgramInterface (API)). The performance of certain of the operations may bedistributed among the processors, not only residing within a singlemachine, but deployed across a number of machines. In some exampleembodiments, the processors or processor-implemented components may belocated in a single geographic location (e.g., within a homeenvironment, an office environment, or a server farm). In other exampleembodiments, the processors or processor-implemented components may bedistributed across a number of geographic locations.

“PROCESSOR” in this context refers to any circuit or virtual circuit (aphysical circuit emulated by logic executing on an actual processor)that manipulates data values according to control signals (e.g.,“commands”, “op codes”, “machine code”, etc.) and which producescorresponding output signals that are applied to operate a machine. Aprocessor may, for example, be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), aReduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC) processor, a ComplexInstruction Set Computing (CISC) processor, a Graphics Processing Unit(GPU), a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application SpecificIntegrated Circuit (ASIC), a Radio-Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC)or any combination thereof. A processor may further be a multi-coreprocessor having two or more independent processors (sometimes referredto as “cores”) that may execute instructions contemporaneously.

“TIMESTAMP” in this context refers to a sequence of characters orencoded information identifying when a certain event occurred, forexample giving date and time of day, sometimes accurate to a smallfraction of a second.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An engagement tracking system monitors user interactions with mediaitems to calculate an engagement score of the media item. The engagementtracking system may be or include any instrumentality or aggregate ofinstrumentalities operable to compute, process, store, display,generate, communicate, or apply various forms of data for geo-fencing,control, or other purposes. For example, the engagement tracking systemmay be or include a group of one or more server machines configured todetect an exposure of a client device to a media item associated with ageo-fenced area maintained by the engagement tracking system. Inresponse to detecting the exposure of the client device to the mediaitem, the engagement tracking system tracks a location of the clientdevice based on access requests to location based media items. Theengagement tracking system may thereby monitor client devices exposed tothe media item in order to calculate an engagement score of the mediaitem.

In various embodiments, an engagement score of a media item can becalculated based on principles described herein. The term “media item”may refer to pictures, videos, and multimedia items to be displayed atclient devices. For example, a media item may include an overlay orfilter that a user of the client device may append to a digital message.Media items may be location as well as experience based, such that themedia item is subject to access conditions that include geo-location orother experience based trigger criteria (e.g., scanning or entering acode, or the occurrence of an event). In such embodiments, the mediaitem may be associated with a set (or sets) of coordinates identifyingone or more physical location encompassed by one or more geo-fences. Forexample, a proprietor may distribute the media item to client deviceslocated within a boundary of the associated geo-fences, and recipientsof the media item may thereby distribute the media item to a network ofclient devices.

Geo-fencing is the practice of using location-aware devices (forexample, but not limited to global positioning (GPS) or radio frequencyidentification (RFID)) to define a geographic boundary around a physicallocation. Once the “virtual barrier” of the geo-fence is established, anadministrator of the geo-fence (e.g., a proprietor of a physicallocation) can set up triggers that distribute media items, textmessages, email alerts, as well as notifications when client devicestransgress the boundary of the geo-fence. In some example embodiments, aproprietor may generate a location based media item with accessconditions that include temporal as well as geolocation criteria,governed by a geo-fence. For example, the geo-fence may be configured toenable access to the media item in response to client devicestransgressing the boundary of the geo-fence at predefined times. In thisway, the proprietor may distribute incentives to a population of usersthat satisfy specific access conditions. Additionally, the location of aclient device can be inferred based on access requests for locationbased media item associated with geo-fences.

The engagement score is a measure of an audience's response to the mediaitem based on user interactions with the media item. User interactionsinclude requests to access the media item (e.g., based on a location ofthe client device), sharing the media item (e.g., via a deliverablemessage, or through social media), as well as viewing and causingdisplay of the media item on a client device. For example, theengagement tracking system may monitor client devices exposed to alocation based media item in order to calculate an engagement score ofthe media item based on visitations of the client devices to geo-fencedareas.

Consider the following example from a user perspective. A user isexposed to a media item associated with proprietor. For example, themedia item may be associated with one or more sets of coordinates thatidentify physical locations associated with the proprietor, and theengagement tracking system may maintain one or more geo-fences thatencompass those physical locations. In response to the exposure to themedia item, the engagement tracking system identifies and tracksvisitations of a client device of the user, based on the geo-fences. Insome example embodiments, the exposure to the media item may cause theengagement tracking system to track the client device for a predefinedperiod of time (e.g., 1 week, 30 days, etc.).

Subsequent to the exposure to the media item, the user transgresses theboundary of a geo-fence associated with the proprietor associated withthe media item exposed to the user. The engagement tracking calculatesan engagement score of the media item based on a number of userinteraction aspects that include, for example, a period of time betweenthe exposure to the media item and an arrival at the associatedgeo-fence, the means in which the user was initially exposed to themedia item, as well as a number of users which transgress the boundaryof the geo-fence subsequent to exposure to the media item.

In some example embodiments, the engagement score may additionally bebased on a “lift” of the media item. “Lift” is a measure of theperformance of a targeted model at predicting or classifying cases ashaving an enhanced response (with respect to a population as a whole),measured against a random choice targeting model. A targeting model isdoing a good job if the response within the target is much better thanthe average for the population as a whole. Lift is therefore the ratioof target response to average response. Here, the target response wouldbe a visitation rate of exposed client devices to the geo-fenced area,while the average response would be the baseline visitation of thegeo-fenced area over a given period of time. The engagement trackingsystem calculates a visitation rate of client devices exposed to themedia item based on the exposed client devices satisfying the accessconditions of the media item, and compares the visitation rate against abaseline visitation rate of client devices not exposed to the mediaitem. The engagement score may include the lift.

In some example embodiments, the engagement tracking system may generatea visualization of the engagement score of the media item. Thevisualization may include a chart or graph that indicates a rate ofchange of a visitation of a geo-fenced area in response to exposure to amedia item. For example, the engagement tracking system may calculate abaseline visitation score associated with a geo-fenced area, based onnormal visitations of unexposed client devices. The engagement trackingsystem may thereby distribute a media item associated with thegeo-fenced area, and track client devices exposed to the media item todetermine whether the client devices become more likely to visit thegeo-fenced area within a predefined time frame.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example messaging system 100 forexchanging data (e.g., messages and associated content) over a network.The messaging system 100 includes multiple client devices 102, each ofwhich hosts a number of applications including a messaging clientapplication 104. Each messaging client application 104 iscommunicatively coupled to other instances of the messaging clientapplication 104 and a messaging server system 108 via a network 106(e.g., the Internet).

Accordingly, each messaging client application 104 is able tocommunicate and exchange data with another messaging client application104 and with the messaging server system 108 via the network 106. Thedata exchanged between messaging client applications 104, and between amessaging client application 104 and the messaging server system 108,includes functions (e.g., commands to invoke functions) as well aspayload data (e.g., text, audio, video or other multimedia data).

The messaging server system 108 provides server-side functionality viathe network 106 to a particular messaging client application 104. Whilecertain functions of the messaging system 100 are described herein asbeing performed by either a messaging client application 104 or by themessaging server system 108, it will be appreciated that the location ofcertain functionality either within the messaging client application 104or the messaging server system 108 is a design choice. For example, itmay be technically preferable to initially deploy certain technology andfunctionality within the messaging server system 108, but to latermigrate this technology and functionality to the messaging clientapplication 104 where a client device 102 has a sufficient processingcapacity.

The messaging server system 108 supports various services and operationsthat are provided to the messaging client application 104. Suchoperations include transmitting data to, receiving data from, andprocessing data generated by the messaging client application 104. Insome embodiments, this data includes, message content, client deviceinformation, geolocation information, media annotation and overlays,message content persistence conditions, social network information, andlive event information, as examples. In other embodiments, other data isused. Data exchanges within the messaging system 100 are invoked andcontrolled through functions available via user interfaces (Uls) of themessaging client application 104.

Turning now specifically to the messaging server system 108, anApplication Program Interface (API) server 110 is coupled to, andprovides a programmatic interface to, an application server 112. Theapplication server 112 is communicatively coupled to a database server118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which is stored dataassociated with messages processed by the application server 112.

Dealing specifically with the Application Program Interface (API) server110, this server receives and transmits message data (e.g., commands andmessage payloads) between the client device 102 and the applicationserver 112. Specifically, the Application Program Interface (API) server110 provides a set of interfaces (e.g., routines and protocols) that canbe called or queried by the messaging client application 104 in order toinvoke functionality of the application server 112. The ApplicationProgram Interface (API) server 110 exposes various functions supportedby the application server 112, including account registration, loginfunctionality, the sending of messages, via the application server 112,from a particular messaging client application 104 to another messagingclient application 104, the sending of media files (e.g., images orvideo) from a messaging client application 104 to the messaging serverapplication 114, and for possible access by another messaging clientapplication 104, the setting of a collection of media data (e.g.,story), the retrieval of a list of friends of a user of a client device102, the retrieval of such collections, the retrieval of messages andcontent, the adding and deletion of friends to a social graph, thelocation of friends within a social graph, opening and application event(e.g., relating to the messaging client application 104).

The application server 112 hosts a number of applications andsubsystems, including a messaging server application 114, an imageprocessing system 116, a social network system 122, and an engagementtracking system 124. The messaging server application 114 implements anumber of message processing technologies and functions, particularlyrelated to the aggregation and other processing of content (e.g.,textual and multimedia content) included in messages received frommultiple instances of the messaging client application 104. As will bedescribed in further detail, the text and media content from multiplesources may be aggregated into collections of content (e.g., calledstories or galleries). These collections are then made available, by themessaging server application 114, to the messaging client application104. Other processor and memory intensive processing of data may also beperformed server-side by the messaging server application 114, in viewof the hardware requirements for such processing.

The application server 112 also includes an image processing system 116that is dedicated to performing various image processing operations,typically with respect to images or video received within the payload ofa message at the messaging server application 114.

The social network system 122 supports various social networkingfunctions services, and makes these functions and services available tothe messaging server application 114. To this end, the social networksystem 122 maintains and accesses an entity graph 304 within thedatabase 120. Examples of functions and services supported by the socialnetwork system 122 include the identification of other users of themessaging system 100 with which a particular user has relationships oris “following,” and also the identification of other entities andinterests of a particular user.

The engagement tracking system 124 provides functionality to monitor andcalculate an engagement score of media items distributed by themessaging server application 114. The engagement tracking system 124maintains one or more geo-fences that encompass physical locations, andmanages the distribution and access of media items associated with thegeo-fences.

The application server 112 is communicatively coupled to a databaseserver 118, which facilitates access to a database 120 in which isstored data associated with messages processed by the messaging serverapplication 114.

FIG. 2 is block diagram illustrating further details regarding themessaging system 100, according to example embodiments. Specifically,the messaging system 100 is shown to comprise the messaging clientapplication 104 and the application server 112, which in turn embody anumber of some subsystems, namely an ephemeral timer system 202, acollection management system 204 and an annotation system 206.

The ephemeral timer system 202 is responsible for enforcing thetemporary access to content permitted by the messaging clientapplication 104 and the messaging server application 114. To this end,the ephemeral timer system 202 incorporates a number of timers that,based on duration and display parameters associated with a message, orcollection of messages (e.g., a SNAPCHAT story), selectively display andenable access to messages and associated content via the messagingclient application 104. Further details regarding the operation of theephemeral timer system 202 are provided below.

The collection management system 204 is responsible for managingcollections of media (e.g., collections of text, image video and audiodata). In some examples, a collection of content (e.g., messages,including images, video, text and audio) may be organized into an “eventgallery” or an “event story.” Such a collection may be made availablefor a specified time period, such as the duration of an event to whichthe content relates. For example, content relating to a music concertmay be made available as a “story” for the duration of that musicconcert. The collection management system 204 may also be responsiblefor publishing an icon that provides notification of the existence of aparticular collection to the user interface of the messaging clientapplication 104.

The collection management system 204 furthermore includes a curationinterface 208 that allows a collection manager to manage and curate aparticular collection of content. For example, the curation interface208 enables an event organizer to curate a collection of contentrelating to a specific event (e.g., delete inappropriate content orredundant messages). Additionally, the collection management system 204employs machine vision (or image recognition technology) and contentrules to automatically curate a content collection. In certainembodiments, compensation may be paid to a user for inclusion of usergenerated content into a collection. In such cases, the curationinterface 208 operates to automatically make payments to such users forthe use of their content.

The annotation system 206 provides various functions that enable a userto annotate or otherwise modify or edit media content associated with amessage. For example, the annotation system 206 provides functionsrelated to the generation and publishing of media overlays for messagesprocessed by the messaging system 100. The annotation system 206operatively supplies a media overlay (e.g., a SNAPCHAT filter) to themessaging client application 104 based on a geolocation of the clientdevice 102. In another example, the annotation system 206 operativelysupplies a media overlay to the messaging client application 104 basedon other information, such as, social network information of the user ofthe client device 102. A media overlay may include audio and visualcontent and visual effects. Examples of audio and visual content includepictures, texts, logos, animations, and sound effects. An example of avisual effect includes color overlaying. The audio and visual content orthe visual effects can be applied to a media content item (e.g., aphoto) at the client device 102. For example, the media overlayincluding text that can be overlaid on top of a photograph generatedtaken by the client device 102. In another example, the media overlayincludes an identification of a location overlay (e.g., Venice beach), aname of a live event, or a name of a merchant overlay (e.g., BeachCoffee House). In another example, the annotation system 206 uses thegeolocation of the client device 102 to identify a media overlay thatincludes the name of a merchant at the geolocation of the client device102. The media overlay may include other indicia associated with themerchant. The media overlays may be stored in the database 120 andaccessed through the database server 118.

In one example embodiment, the annotation system 206 provides auser-based publication platform that enables users to select ageolocation on a map, and upload content associated with the selectedgeolocation. The user may also specify circumstances under which aparticular media overlay should be offered to other users. Theannotation system 206 generates a media overlay that includes theuploaded content and associates the uploaded content with the selectedgeolocation.

In another example embodiment, the annotation system 206 provides amerchant-based publication platform that enables merchants to select aparticular media overlay associated with a geolocation via a biddingprocess. For example, the annotation system 206 associates the mediaoverlay of a highest bidding merchant with a corresponding geolocationfor a predefined amount of time

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram 300 illustrating data 300 which may bestored in the database 120 of the messaging server system 108, accordingto certain example embodiments. While the content of the database 120 isshown to comprise a number of tables, it will be appreciated that thedata could be stored in other types of data structures (e.g., as anobject-oriented database).

The database 120 includes message data stored within a message table314. The entity table 302 stores entity data, including an entity graph304. Entities for which records are maintained within the entity table302 may include individuals, corporate entities, organizations, objects,places, events etc. Regardless of type, any entity regarding which themessaging server system 108 stores data may be a recognized entity. Eachentity is provided with a unique identifier, as well as an entity typeidentifier (not shown).

The entity graph 304 furthermore stores information regardingrelationships and associations between entities. Such relationships maybe social, professional (e.g., work at a common corporation ororganization) interested-based or activity-based, merely for example.

The database 120 also stores annotation data, in the example form offilters, in an annotation table 312. Filters for which data is storedwithin the annotation table 312 are associated with and applied tovideos (for which data is stored in a video table 310) and/or images(for which data is stored in an image table 308). Filters, in oneexample, are overlays that are displayed as overlaid on an image orvideo during presentation to a recipient user. Filters may be of variestypes, including a user-selected filters from a gallery of filterspresented to a sending user by the messaging client application 104 whenthe sending user is composing a message. Other types of filers includegeolocation filters (also known as geo-filters) which may be presentedto a sending user based on geographic location. For example, geolocationfilters specific to a neighborhood or special location may be presentedwithin a user interface by the messaging client application 104, basedon geolocation information determined by a GPS unit of the client device102. Another type of filer is a data filer, which may be selectivelypresented to a sending user by the messaging client application 104,based on other inputs or information gathered by the client device 102during the message creation process. Example of data filters includecurrent temperature at a specific location, a current speed at which asending user is traveling, battery life for a client device 102 or thecurrent time.

Other annotation data that may be stored within the image table 308 isso-called “lens” data. A “lens” may be a real-time special effect andsound that may be added to an image or a video.

As mentioned above, the video table 310 stores video data which, in oneembodiment, is associated with messages for which records are maintainedwithin the message table 314. Similarly, the image table 308 storesimage data associated with messages for which message data is stored inthe entity table 302. The entity table 302 may associate variousannotations from the annotation table 312 with various images and videosstored in the image table 308 and the video table 310.

A story table 306 stores data regarding collections of messages andassociated image, video or audio data, which are compiled into acollection (e.g., a SNAPCHAT story or a gallery). The creation of aparticular collection may be initiated by a particular user (e.g., eachuser for which a record is maintained in the entity table 302) A usermay create a “personal story” in the form of a collection of contentthat has been created and sent/broadcast by that user. To this end, theuser interface of the messaging client application 104 may include anicon that is user selectable to enable a sending user to add specificcontent to his or her personal story.

A collection may also constitute a “live story,” which is a collectionof content from multiple users that is created manually, automaticallyor using a combination of manual and automatic techniques. For example,a “live story” may constitute a curated stream of user-submitted contentfrom varies locations and events. Users, whose client devices havelocation services enabled and are at a common location event at aparticular time may, for example, be presented with an option, via auser interface of the messaging client application 104, to contributecontent to a particular live story. The live story may be identified tothe user by the messaging client application 104, based on his or herlocation. The end result is a “live story” told from a communityperspective.

A further type of content collection is known as a “location story”,which enables a user whose client device 102 is located within aspecific geographic location (e.g., on a college or university campus)to contribute to a particular collection. In some embodiments, acontribution to a location story may require a second degree ofauthentication to verify that the end user belongs to a specificorganization or other entity (e.g., is a student on the universitycampus).

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating a structure of a message 400,according to some in some embodiments, generated by a messaging clientapplication 104 for communication to a further messaging clientapplication 104 or the messaging server application 114. The content ofa particular message 400 is used to populate the message table 314stored within the database 120, accessible by the messaging serverapplication 114. Similarly, the content of a message 400 is stored inmemory as “in-transit” or “in-flight” data of the client device 102 orthe application server 112. The message 400 is shown to include thefollowing components:

-   -   A message identifier 402: a unique identifier that identifies        the message 400.    -   A message text payload 404: text, to be generated by a user via        a user interface of the client device 102 and that is included        in the message 400.    -   A message image payload 406: image data, captured by a camera        component of a client device 102 or retrieved from memory of a        client device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message video payload 408: video data, captured by a camera        component or retrieved from a memory component of the client        device 102 and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message audio payload 410: audio data, captured by a        microphone or retrieved from the memory component of the client        device 102, and that is included in the message 400.    -   A message annotations 412: annotation data (e.g., filters,        stickers or other enhancements) that represents annotations to        be applied to message image payload 406, message video payload        408, or message audio payload 410 of the message 400.    -   A message duration parameter 414: parameter value indicating, in        seconds, the amount of time for which content of the message        (e.g., the message image payload 406, message video payload 408,        message audio payload 410) is to be presented or made accessible        to a user via the messaging client application 104.    -   A message geolocation parameter 416: geolocation data (e.g.,        latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates) associated with the        content payload of the message. Multiple message geolocation        parameter 416 values may be included in the payload, each of        these parameter values being associated with respect to content        items included in the content (e.g., a specific image into        within the message image payload 406, or a specific video in the        message video payload 408).    -   A message story identifier 418: identifier values identifying        one or more content collections (e.g., “stories”) with which a        particular content item in the message image payload 406 of the        message 400 is associated. For example, multiple images within        the message image payload 406 may each be associated with        multiple content collections using identifier values.    -   A message tag 420: each message 400 may be tagged with multiple        tags, each of which is indicative of the subject matter of        content included in the message payload. For example, where a        particular image included in the message image payload 406        depicts an animal (e.g., a lion), a tag value may be included        within the message tag 420 that is indicative of the relevant        animal. Tag values may be generated manually, based on user        input, or may be automatically generated using, for example,        image recognition.    -   A message sender identifier 422: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address or device identifier)        indicative of a user of the client device 102 on which the        message 400 was generated and from which the message 400 was        sent    -   A message receiver identifier 424: an identifier (e.g., a        messaging system identifier, email address or device identifier)        indicative of a user of the client device 102 to which the        message 400 is addressed.

The contents (e.g. values) of the various components of message 400 maybe pointers to locations in tables within which content data values arestored. For example, an image value in the message image payload 406 maybe a pointer to (or address of) a location within an image table 308.Similarly, values within the message video payload 408 may point to datastored within a video table 310, values stored within the messageannotations 412 may point to data stored in an annotation table 312,values stored within the message story identifier 418 may point to datastored in a story table 306, and values stored within the message senderidentifier 422 and the message receiver identifier 424 may point to userrecords stored within an entity table 302.

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating an access-limiting process500, in terms of which access to content (e.g., an ephemeral message502, and associated multimedia payload of data) or a content collection(e.g., an ephemeral message story 504) may be time-limited (e.g., madeephemeral).

An ephemeral message 502 is shown to be associated with a messageduration parameter 506, the value of which determines an amount of timethat the ephemeral message 502 will be displayed to a receiving user ofthe ephemeral message 502 by the messaging client application 104. Inone embodiment, where the messaging client application 104 is a SNAPCHATapplication client, an ephemeral message 502 is viewable by a receivinguser for up to a maximum of 10 seconds, depending on the amount of timethat the sending user specifies using the message duration parameter506.

The message duration parameter 506 and the message receiver identifier424 are shown to be inputs to a message timer 512, which is responsiblefor determining the amount of time that the ephemeral message 502 isshown to a particular receiving user identified by the message receiveridentifier 424. In particular, the ephemeral message 502 will only beshown to the relevant receiving user for a time period determined by thevalue of the message duration parameter 506. The message timer 512 isshown to provide output to a more generalized ephemeral timer system202, which is responsible for the overall timing of display of content(e.g., an ephemeral message 502) to a receiving user.

The ephemeral message 502 is shown in FIG. 5 to be included within anephemeral message story 504 (e.g., a personal SNAPCHAT story, or anevent story). The ephemeral message story 504 has an associated storyduration parameter 508, a value of which determines a time-duration forwhich the ephemeral message story 504 is presented and accessible tousers of the messaging system 100. The story duration parameter 508, forexample, may be the duration of a music concert, where the ephemeralmessage story 504 is a collection of content pertaining to that concert.Alternatively, a user (either the owning user or a curator user) mayspecify the value for the story duration parameter 508 when performingthe setup and creation of the ephemeral message story 504.

Additionally, each ephemeral message 502 within the ephemeral messagestory 504 has an associated story participation parameter 510, a valueof which determines the duration of time for which the ephemeral message502 will be accessible within the context of the ephemeral message story504. Accordingly, a particular ephemeral message story 504 may “expire”and become inaccessible within the context of the ephemeral messagestory 504, prior to the ephemeral message story 504 itself expiring interms of the story duration parameter 508. The story duration parameter508, story participation parameter 510, and message receiver identifier424 each provide input to a story timer 514, which operationallydetermines, firstly, whether a particular ephemeral message 502 of theephemeral message story 504 will be displayed to a particular receivinguser and, if so, for how long. Note that the ephemeral message story 504is also aware of the identity of the particular receiving user as aresult of the message receiver identifier 424.

Accordingly, the story timer 514 operationally controls the overalllifespan of an associated ephemeral message story 504, as well as anindividual ephemeral message 502 included in the ephemeral message story504. In one embodiment, each and every ephemeral message 502 within theephemeral message story 504 remains viewable and accessible for atime-period specified by the story duration parameter 508. In a furtherembodiment, a certain ephemeral message 502 may expire, within thecontext of ephemeral message story 504, based on a story participationparameter 510. Note that a message duration parameter 506 may stilldetermine the duration of time for which a particular ephemeral message502 is displayed to a receiving user, even within the context of theephemeral message story 504. Accordingly, the message duration parameter506 determines the duration of time that a particular ephemeral message502 is displayed to a receiving user, regardless of whether thereceiving user is viewing that ephemeral message 502 inside or outsidethe context of an ephemeral message story 504.

The ephemeral timer system 202 may furthermore operationally remove aparticular ephemeral message 502 from the ephemeral message story 504based on a determination that it has exceeded an associated storyparticipation parameter 510. For example, when a sending user hasestablished a story participation parameter 510 of 24 hours fromposting, the ephemeral timer system 202 will remove the relevantephemeral message 502 from the ephemeral message story 504 after thespecified 24 hours. The ephemeral timer system 202 also operates toremove an ephemeral message story 504 either when the storyparticipation parameter 510 for each and every ephemeral message 502within the ephemeral message story 504 has expired, or when theephemeral message story 504 itself has expired in terms of the storyduration parameter 508.

In certain use cases, a creator of a particular ephemeral message story504 may specify an indefinite story duration parameter 508. In thiscase, the expiration of the story participation parameter 510 for thelast remaining ephemeral message 502 within the ephemeral message story504 will determine when the ephemeral message story 504 itself expires.In this case, a new ephemeral message 502, added to the ephemeralmessage story 504, with a new story participation parameter 510,effectively extends the life of an ephemeral message story 504 to equalthe value of the story participation parameter 510.

Responsive to the ephemeral timer system 202 determining that anephemeral message story 504 has expired (e.g., is no longer accessible),the ephemeral timer system 202 communicates with the messaging system100 (and, for example, specifically the messaging client application 104to cause an indicium (e.g., an icon) associated with the relevantephemeral message story 504 to no longer be displayed within a userinterface of the messaging client application 104. Similarly, when theephemeral timer system 202 determines that the message durationparameter 506 for a particular ephemeral message 502 has expired, theephemeral timer system 202 causes the messaging client application 104to no longer display an indicium (e.g., an icon or textualidentification) associated with the ephemeral message 502.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating components of the engagementtracking system 124, that configure the engagement tracking system 124to maintain a set of geo-fences, detect exposure of media items toclient devices, and calculate engagement scores of media items,according to some example embodiments. The engagement tracking system124 is shown as including a geo-fencing module 602, an exposuredetecting module 604, a visitation tracking module 606, and a scoringmodule 608, all configured to communicate with each other (e.g., via abus, shared memory, or a switch). Any one or more of these modules maybe implemented using one or more processors 610 (e.g., by configuringsuch one or more processors to perform functions described for thatmodule) and hence may include one or more of the processors 610.

Any one or more of the modules described may be implemented usinghardware alone (e.g., one or more of the processors 610 of a machine) ora combination of hardware and software. For example, any moduledescribed of the engagement tracking system 124 may physically includean arrangement of one or more of the processors 610 (e.g., a subset ofor among the one or more processors of the machine) configured toperform the operations described herein for that module. As anotherexample, any module of the engagement tracking system 610 may includesoftware, hardware, or both, that configure an arrangement of one ormore processors 610 (e.g., among the one or more processors of themachine) to perform the operations described herein for that module.Accordingly, different modules of the engagement tracking system 610 mayinclude and configure different arrangements of such processors 610 or asingle arrangement of such processors 610 at different points in time.Moreover, any two or more modules of the engagement tracking system 124may be combined into a single module, and the functions described hereinfor a single module may be subdivided among multiple modules.Furthermore, according to various example embodiments, modules describedherein as being implemented within a single machine, database, or devicemay be distributed across multiple machines, databases, or devices.

FIG. 7 is a diagram 700 illustrating a geo-fence 702 generated andmaintained by an engagement tracking system 124, according to certainexample embodiments. As seen in FIG. 7, the geo-fence 702 encompasses aphysical location 704. As a user 706 carries client device 102 throughthe boundary of geo-fence 702, the engagement tracking system 124 mayprovide access to a location based media item to the client device 102.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating operations of the engagement trackingsystem 124 in performing a method 800 for calculating an engagementscore of a media item, according to certain example embodiments. Asshown in FIG. 8, one or more operations 802, 804, 806, 808, and 810 maybe performed as part (e.g., a precursor task, a subroutine, or aportion) of the method 800, according to some example embodiments.

In operation 802, the geo-fencing module 602 maintains a geo-fence(e.g., geo-fence 702 of FIG. 7) that encompasses a physical locationassociated with a proprietor (e.g., physical location 704). In certainexample embodiments, the geo-fence may be configured to provide accessto a media item based on access conditions that include geo-locationcriteria. As client devices transgress a boundary of the geo-fence, thegeo-fencing module 602 provides access to the media item. Client deviceswith access to the media item may thereby distribute or otherwise sharethe media item via a social network.

In operation 804, the exposure detection module 604 detects an exposureof a media item associated with the geo-fence at a first client device.For example, a user within the boundary of the geo-fence may havedistributed the media item as a component of an ephemeral messagethrough a social network to a set of client devices that included thefirst client device. Having received the media item, the first clientdevice may cause display of the media item. In response to causingdisplay of the media item, the exposure detecting module 604 detects anexposure of the first client device to the media item. In detecting theexposure of the first client device to the media item, the exposuredetection module 604 may note a time and date in which the exposure tothe media item occurred (e.g., a first moment).

In operation 806, the visitation tracking module 606 tracks the firstclient device in response to detecting the exposure to the media item.Specifically, the visitation tracking module 606 may monitor accessrequests from the first client device to geo-fences to access otherlocation based media items. Based on the access requests, the visitationtracking module 606 may track a location of the first client device. Insome example embodiments, the visitation tracking module 606 tracks thefirst client device for a predefined period of time beginning at thefirst moment in time (in which the exposure was initially detected). Forexample, in response to detecting the exposure to the media item, thevisitation tracking module 606 may track user actions performed by theuser through the first client device for 30 days to log location basedmedia items accessed by the first client device.

In operation 808, the geo-fencing module 602 identifies the first clientdevice within a boundary of the geo-fence, and receives an accessrequest to access the media item associated with the geo-fence. Thevisitation tracking module 606 detects the access request for the mediaitem associated with the geo-fence. In some embodiments, the visitationtracking module 606 records a date and time in which the access requestwas received (e.g., a second moment). For example, the media item may bea location based media item that is only available at the physicallocation, through the geo-fence. Upon transgressing the boundary of thegeo-fence, the client device may request to access the media item. Infurther embodiments, the access of the media item by the first clientdevice may be based on the first client device visiting a web-pageassociated with the media item.

In operation 810, the scoring module 608 calculates an engagement scoreof the media item in response to the visitation module 608 detecting theaccess request. The engagement score may be based on a period of timefrom the exposure of the first client device to the media item to theaccess request for the media item from the first client device. In thisway, the engagement tracking system 124 may calculate and quantify aneffectiveness of a media item in incentivizing exposed client devices toperform a particular action.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating operations of the engagement trackingsystem 124 in performing a method 900 for calculating an engagementscore based on a lift calculated by the engagement tracking system 124,according to certain example embodiments. As shown in FIG. 9, one ormore operations 902, 904, 906, and 908 may be performed as part (e.g., aprecursor task, a subroutine, or a portion) of the method 900, accordingto some example embodiments.

In operation 902, the visitation tracking module 606 calculates abaseline visitation of a geo-fenced area. The baseline visitation is anindication of a number of client devices within the geo-fenced areaduring a period of time. For example, the baseline visitation mayindicate an average number of client devices that enter into ageo-fenced area in a day. In some example embodiments, the baselinevisitation may indicate a historical average visitation on a specifictime, day, week, month, season, holiday, or event. For example, thebaseline visitation may indicate the average number of client devicesthat enter a geo-fenced area during Halloween, the month of May, or onMondays.

The baseline visitation may be calculated based on historical geo-fencedata collected by the geo-fencing module 602 and visitation trackingmodule 606, and stored within the database 120. For example, thegeo-fencing module 602 may log the visitation rate of client devices asthey enter and exit a geo-fence, and store the visitation rate withinthe database 120.

In operation 904, the visitation tracking module 604 calculates a newvisitation of the geo-fenced area based on access requests for anassociated media item, from client devices previously exposed to themedia item. For example, client devices previously exposed to the mediaitem may be tagged by the exposure detection module 604, based onassociated user profile information. The visitation tracking module 606identifies client devices previously exposed to the media item withinthe geo-fenced area, and calculates a new visitation of the geo-fencedarea based on the number of exposed user devices.

The visitation tracking module 606 stores a visitation record of userdevices exposed to the media item within the database 120. At operation906, to calculate a lift associated with the media item, the visitationtracking module 606 accesses the database 120 to retrieve the visitationrecord associated with the media item, and calculates a new visitationover a predefined period of time. The visitation tracking moduleretrieve the baseline visitation of the geo-fenced area over thepredefined period of time, and calculates a lift based on the baselinevisitation and the new visitation. At operation 908, the scoring module608 calculates an engagement score of the media item based on the lift.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method 1000 for calculating anengagement score, according to certain example embodiments. As shown inFIG. 10, one or more operations 1002, 1004, 1006, and 1008 may beperformed as part (e.g., a precursor task, a subroutine, or a portion)of the method 1000, according to some example embodiments.

In operation 1002, the exposure detection module 604 detects an exposureof a media item to a set of client devices. The set of client devicesmay receive the media item in an ephemeral message, and cause display ofthe media item upon accessing the ephemeral message. Upon causingdisplay of the media item, the exposure detection module 604 detects anexposure of the media item to the client device. The exposure detectionmodule 604 records a quantity of the set of client devices within thedatabase 120.

In operation 1004, the geo-fencing module 602 receives an access requestfor a media item associated with the geo-fence from a subset of the setof client devices. For example, subsequent to being exposed to the mediaitem, the subset of client devices enters into the geo-fenced areaassociated with the media item and requests access to the media itemfrom the geo-fencing module 602. The subset of client devices may have aquantity that is less than or equal to the set of client devices. Thegeo-fencing module 602 records the quantity of the subset of clientdevices.

At operation 1006, the scoring module 608 calculates a differencebetween the quantity of client devices in the set of client devices andthe subset of client devices. At operation 1008, the scoring module 608calculates an engagement score of the media item based on thedifference.

Software Architecture

FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating an example software architecture1106, which may be used in conjunction with various hardwarearchitectures herein described. FIG. 11 is a non-limiting example of asoftware architecture and it will be appreciated that many otherarchitectures may be implemented to facilitate the functionalitydescribed herein. The software architecture 1106 may execute on hardwaresuch as machine 700 of FIG. 12 that includes, among other things,processors 1204, memory 1214, and I/O components 1218. A representativehardware layer 1152 is illustrated and can represent, for example, themachine 1200 of FIG. 12. The representative hardware layer 1152 includesa processing unit 1154 having associated executable instructions 1104.Executable instructions 1104 represent the executable instructions ofthe software architecture 1106, including implementation of the methods,components and so forth described herein. The hardware layer 1152 alsoincludes memory and/or storage modules memory/storage 1156, which alsohave executable instructions 1104. The hardware layer 1152 may alsocomprise other hardware 1158.

In the example architecture of FIG. 11, the software architecture 1106may be conceptualized as a stack of layers where each layer providesparticular functionality. For example, the software architecture 1106may include layers such as an operating system 1102, libraries 1120,applications 1116 and a presentation layer 1114. Operationally, theapplications 1116 and/or other components within the layers may invokeapplication programming interface (API) API calls 1108 through thesoftware stack and receive a response as in response to the API calls1108. The layers illustrated are representative in nature and not allsoftware architectures have all layers. For example, some mobile orspecial purpose operating systems may not provide aframeworks/middleware 1118, while others may provide such a layer. Othersoftware architectures may include additional or different layers.

The operating system 1102 may manage hardware resources and providecommon services. The operating system 1102 may include, for example, akernel 1122, services 1124 and drivers 1126. The kernel 1122 may act asan abstraction layer between the hardware and the other software layers.For example, the kernel 1122 may be responsible for memory management,processor management (e.g., scheduling), component management,networking, security settings, and so on. The services 1124 may provideother common services for the other software layers. The drivers 1126are responsible for controlling or interfacing with the underlyinghardware. For instance, the drivers 1126 include display drivers, cameradrivers, Bluetooth® drivers, flash memory drivers, serial communicationdrivers (e.g., Universal Serial Bus (USB) drivers), Wi-Fi® drivers,audio drivers, power management drivers, and so forth depending on thehardware configuration.

The libraries 1120 provide a common infrastructure that is used by theapplications 1116 and/or other components and/or layers. The libraries1120 provide functionality that allows other software components toperform tasks in an easier fashion than to interface directly with theunderlying operating system 1102 functionality (e.g., kernel 1122,services 1124 and/or drivers 1126). The libraries 1120 may includesystem libraries 1144 (e.g., C standard library) that may providefunctions such as memory allocation functions, string manipulationfunctions, mathematical functions, and the like. In addition, thelibraries 1120 may include API libraries 1146 such as media libraries(e.g., libraries to support presentation and manipulation of variousmedia format such as MPREG4, H.264, MP3, AAC, AMR, JPG, PNG), graphicslibraries (e.g., an OpenGL framework that may be used to render 2D and3D in a graphic content on a display), database libraries (e.g., SQLitethat may provide various relational database functions), web libraries(e.g., WebKit that may provide web browsing functionality), and thelike. The libraries 1120 may also include a wide variety of otherlibraries 1148 to provide many other APIs to the applications 1116 andother software components/modules.

The frameworks/middleware 1118 (also sometimes referred to asmiddleware) provide a higher-level common infrastructure that may beused by the applications 1116 and/or other software components/modules.For example, the frameworks/middleware 1118 may provide various graphicuser interface (GUI) functions, high-level resource management,high-level location services, and so forth. The frameworks/middleware1118 may provide a broad spectrum of other APIs that may be utilized bythe applications 1116 and/or other software components/modules, some ofwhich may be specific to a particular operating system 1102 or platform.

The applications 1116 include built-in applications 1138 and/orthird-party applications 1140. Examples of representative built-inapplications 1138 may include, but are not limited to, a contactsapplication, a browser application, a book reader application, alocation application, a media application, a messaging application,and/or a game application. Third-party applications 1140 may include anapplication developed using the ANDROID™ or IOS™ software developmentkit (SDK) by an entity other than the vendor of the particular platform,and may be mobile software running on a mobile operating system such asIOS™, ANDROID™, WINDOWS® Phone, or other mobile operating systems. Thethird-party applications 1140 may invoke the API calls 1108 provided bythe mobile operating system (such as operating system 1102) tofacilitate functionality described herein.

The applications 1116 may use built in operating system functions (e.g.,kernel 1122, services 1124 and/or drivers 1126), libraries 1120, andframeworks/middleware 1118 to create user interfaces to interact withusers of the system. Alternatively, or additionally, in some systemsinteractions with a user may occur through a presentation layer, such aspresentation layer 1114. In these systems, the application/component“logic” can be separated from the aspects of the application/componentthat interact with a user. FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustratingcomponents of a machine 1200, according to some example embodiments,able to read instructions from a machine-readable medium (e.g., amachine-readable storage medium) and perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein. Specifically, FIG. 12 shows adiagrammatic representation of the machine 1200 in the example form of acomputer system, within which instructions 1210 (e.g., software, aprogram, an application, an applet, an app, or other executable code)for causing the machine 1200 to perform any one or more of themethodologies discussed herein may be executed. As such, theinstructions 1210 may be used to implement modules or componentsdescribed herein. The instructions 1210 transform the general,non-programmed machine 1200 into a particular machine 1200 programmed tocarry out the described and illustrated functions in the mannerdescribed. In alternative embodiments, the machine 1200 operates as astandalone device or may be coupled (e.g., networked) to other machines.In a networked deployment, the machine 1200 may operate in the capacityof a server machine or a client machine in a server-client networkenvironment, or as a peer machine in a peer-to-peer (or distributed)network environment. The machine 1200 may comprise, but not be limitedto, a server computer, a client computer, a personal computer (PC), atablet computer, a laptop computer, a netbook, a set-top box (STB), apersonal digital assistant (PDA), an entertainment media system, acellular telephone, a smart phone, a mobile device, a wearable device(e.g., a smart watch), a smart home device (e.g., a smart appliance),other smart devices, a web appliance, a network router, a networkswitch, a network bridge, or any machine capable of executing theinstructions 1210, sequentially or otherwise, that specify actions to betaken by machine 1200. Further, while only a single machine 1200 isillustrated, the term “machine” shall also be taken to include acollection of machines that individually or jointly execute theinstructions 1210 to perform any one or more of the methodologiesdiscussed herein.

The machine 1200 may include processors 1204, memory memory/storage1206, and I/O components 1218, which may be configured to communicatewith each other such as via a bus 1202. The memory/storage 1206 mayinclude a memory 1214, such as a main memory, or other memory storage,and a storage unit 1216, both accessible to the processors 1204 such asvia the bus 1202. The storage unit 1216 and memory 1214 store theinstructions 1210 embodying any one or more of the methodologies orfunctions described herein. The instructions 1210 may also reside,completely or partially, within the memory 1214, within the storage unit1216, within at least one of the processors 1204 (e.g., within theprocessor's cache memory), or any suitable combination thereof, duringexecution thereof by the machine 1200. Accordingly, the memory 1214, thestorage unit 1216, and the memory of processors 1204 are examples ofmachine-readable media.

The I/O components 1218 may include a wide variety of components toreceive input, provide output, produce output, transmit information,exchange information, capture measurements, and so on. The specific I/Ocomponents 1218 that are included in a particular machine 1200 willdepend on the type of machine. For example, portable machines such asmobile phones will likely include a touch input device or other suchinput mechanisms, while a headless server machine will likely notinclude such a touch input device. It will be appreciated that the I/Ocomponents 1218 may include many other components that are not shown inFIG. 12. The I/O components 1218 are grouped according to functionalitymerely for simplifying the following discussion and the grouping is inno way limiting. In various example embodiments, the I/O components 1218may include output components 1226 and input components 1228. The outputcomponents 1226 may include visual components (e.g., a display such as aplasma display panel (PDP), a light emitting diode (LED) display, aliquid crystal display (LCD), a projector, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)),acoustic components (e.g., speakers), haptic components (e.g., avibratory motor, resistance mechanisms), other signal generators, and soforth. The input components 1228 may include alphanumeric inputcomponents (e.g., a keyboard, a touch screen configured to receivealphanumeric input, a photo-optical keyboard, or other alphanumericinput components), point based input components (e.g., a mouse, atouchpad, a trackball, a joystick, a motion sensor, or other pointinginstrument), tactile input components (e.g., a physical button, a touchscreen that provides location and/or force of touches or touch gestures,or other tactile input components), audio input components (e.g., amicrophone), and the like.

In further example embodiments, the I/O components 1218 may includebiometric components 1230, motion components 1234, environmentalenvironment components 1236, or position components 1238 among a widearray of other components. For example, the biometric components 1230may include components to detect expressions (e.g., hand expressions,facial expressions, vocal expressions, body gestures, or eye tracking),measure biosignals (e.g., blood pressure, heart rate, body temperature,perspiration, or brain waves), identify a person (e.g., voiceidentification, retinal identification, facial identification,fingerprint identification, or electroencephalogram basedidentification), and the like. The motion components 1234 may includeacceleration sensor components (e.g., accelerometer), gravitation sensorcomponents, rotation sensor components (e.g., gyroscope), and so forth.The environment components 1236 may include, for example, illuminationsensor components (e.g., photometer), temperature sensor components(e.g., one or more thermometer that detect ambient temperature),humidity sensor components, pressure sensor components (e.g.,barometer), acoustic sensor components (e.g., one or more microphonesthat detect background noise), proximity sensor components (e.g.,infrared sensors that detect nearby objects), gas sensors (e.g., gasdetection sensors to detection concentrations of hazardous gases forsafety or to measure pollutants in the atmosphere), or other componentsthat may provide indications, measurements, or signals corresponding toa surrounding physical environment. The position components 1238 mayinclude location sensor components (e.g., a Global Position system (GPS)receiver component), altitude sensor components (e.g., altimeters orbarometers that detect air pressure from which altitude may be derived),orientation sensor components (e.g., magnetometers), and the like.

Communication may be implemented using a wide variety of technologies.The UO components 1218 may include communication components 1240operable to couple the machine 1200 to a network 1232 or devices 1220via coupling 1222 and coupling 1224 respectively. For example, thecommunication components 1240 may include a network interface componentor other suitable device to interface with the network 1232. In furtherexamples, communication components 1240 may include wired communicationcomponents, wireless communication components, cellular communicationcomponents, Near Field Communication (NFC) components, Bluetooth®components (e.g., Bluetooth® Low Energy), Wi-Fi® components, and othercommunication components to provide communication via other modalities.The devices 1220 may be another machine or any of a wide variety ofperipheral devices (e.g., a peripheral device coupled via a UniversalSerial Bus (USB)).

Moreover, the communication components 1240 may detect identifiers orinclude components operable to detect identifiers. For example, thecommunication components 1240 may include Radio Frequency Identification(RFID) tag reader components, NFC smart tag detection components,optical reader components (e.g., an optical sensor to detectone-dimensional bar codes such as Universal Product Code (UPC) bar code,multi-dimensional bar codes such as Quick Response (QR) code, Azteccode, Data Matrix, Dataglyph, MaxiCode, PDF417, Ultra Code, UCC RSS-2Dbar code, and other optical codes), or acoustic detection components(e.g., microphones to identify tagged audio signals). In addition, avariety of information may be derived via the communication components1240, such as, location via Internet Protocol (IP) geo-location,location via Wi-Fi® signal triangulation, location via detecting a NFCbeacon signal that may indicate a particular location, and so forth.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a memory; and at least onehardware processor coupled to the memory and comprising an engagementtracking application that causes the system to perform operationscomprising: accessing a user profile that includes a tag indicating anexposure to media content associated with a location of interest;generating a visitation score associated with the location of interestbased on the tag that indicates the exposure of the user profile to themedia content associated with the location of interest; accessing abaseline value associated with the location of interest, the baselinevalue indicating a number of client devices located at the location ofinterest over a predefined period of time; and generating a score to beassociated to the media content based on a comparison of the visitationscore and the baseline value.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein theaccessing the user profile includes: receiving a request from a clientdevice associated with the user profile, wherein the request includeslocation data that corresponds with the location of interest.
 3. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the accessing the user profile includes:detecting a client device associated with the user profile within ageo-fence that encompasses the location of interest.
 4. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the operations further comprise: generating avisualization of the score; and causing display of the visualization ofthe score.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the visualization comprisesa graph that indicates a rate of change based on a difference betweenthe baseline value and the visitation score.
 6. The system of claim 1,wherein the operations further comprise generating the baseline value,and the generating the baseline value includes: detecting a plurality ofclient devices within a geo-fence that encompasses the location ofinterest over the predefined period of time.
 7. The system of claim 1,wherein the operations further comprise: associating media content witha set of geolocation coordinates that correspond with the location ofinterest.
 8. A method comprising: accessing a user profile that includesa tag indicating an exposure to media content associated with a locationof interest; generating a visitation score associated with the locationof interest based on the tag that indicates the exposure of the userprofile to the media content associated with the location of interest;accessing a baseline value associated with the location of interest, thebaseline value indicating a number of client devices located at thelocation of interest over a predefined period of time; and generating ascore to be associated to the media content based on a comparison of thevisitation score and the baseline value.
 9. The method of claim 8,wherein the accessing the user profile includes: receiving a requestfrom a client device associated with the user profile, wherein therequest includes location data that corresponds with the location ofinterest.
 10. The method of claim 8, wherein the accessing the userprofile includes: detecting a client device associated with the userprofile within a geo-fence that encompasses the location of interest.11. The method of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:generating a visualization of the score; and causing display of thevisualization of the score.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein thevisualization comprises a graph that indicates a rate of change based ona difference between the baseline value and the visitation score. 13.The method of claim 8, wherein the operations further comprisegenerating the baseline value, and the generating the baseline valueincludes: detecting a plurality of client devices within a geo-fencethat encompasses the location of interest over the predefined period oftime.
 14. The method of claim 8, wherein the method further comprises:associating media content with a set of geolocation coordinates thatcorrespond with the location of interest.
 15. A non-transitorymachine-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, whenexecuted by one or more processors of a machine, cause the machine toperform operations comprising: accessing a user profile that includes atag indicating an exposure to media content associated with a locationof interest; generating a visitation score associated with the locationof interest based on the tag that indicates the exposure of the userprofile to the media content associated with the location of interest;accessing a baseline value associated with the location of interest, thebaseline value indicating a number of client devices located at thelocation of interest over a predefined period of time; and generating ascore to be associated to the media content based on a comparison of thevisitation score and the baseline value.
 16. The non-transitorymachine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the accessing theuser profile includes: receiving a request from a client deviceassociated with the user profile, wherein the request includes locationdata that corresponds with the location of interest.
 17. Thenon-transitory machine-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein theaccessing the user profile includes: detecting a client deviceassociated with the user profile within a geo-fence that encompasses thelocation of interest.
 18. The non-transitory machine-readable storagemedium of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise: generatinga visualization of the score; and causing display of the visualizationof the score.
 19. The non-transitory machine-readable storage medium ofclaim 18, wherein the visualization comprises a graph that indicates arate of change based on a difference between the baseline value and thevisitation score.
 20. The non-transitory machine-readable storage mediumof claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise generating thebaseline value, and the generating the baseline value includes:detecting a plurality of client devices within a geo-fence thatencompasses the location of interest over the predefined period of time.